Diploma in General Studies

at University of the Fraser Valley - Abbotsford Campus Canada

A Liberal Arts diploma is an excellent choice if you want to explore broadly before you choose a discipline in the arts.

The Liberal Arts diploma program requires a minimum of 60 university-level credits. It is designed to provide you with a breadth of intellectual and academic experience while recognizing the importance of concentrated study in a specific field or discipline.

The diploma may serve as a stepping stone if you plan to transfer or eventually want to continue your studies to earn a Bachelor of Arts at UFV. If you’re planning to pursue the BA at UFV, you can simultaneously complete the Liberal Arts diploma and satisfy the general requirements for the bachelor’s degree as well as the lower-level requirements for a major, extended minor(s), or minor. This could save you time and money while earning your degree.

In addition to foundational courses in writing, communication, critical thinking, quantitative literacy, and scientific literacy, you can take classes from any of the following disciplines with the goal of finding a focus for your studies:

• Anthropology
• Applied Ethical and Political Philosophy
• Applied Statistics
• Art History
• Biology         
• Business
• Communications
• Computer Information Systems
• Criminal Justice
• Economics 
• English 
• English — Creative Writing 
• French 
• Geography 
• History 
• Indigenous Studies 
• Kinesiology
• Latin American Studies 
• Mathematics 
• Mathematics (Statistics option) 
• Media and Communication Studies 
• Peace and Conflict Studies 
• Philosophy 
• Political Science
• Psychology 
• Sociology 
• Sociology/Anthropology 
• Theatre 
• Visual Arts 

UFV’s Early Childhood Education (ECE) certificate program is an excellent foundation to purse a career working with young children.

Especially designed for students who are coming out of high school, and those already in the workforce the four-semester program takes you through basic courses in communication, interpersonal growth, human development, and the early childhood curriculum.

You explore the theories and current trends in physical, cognitive and psycho-social development, from conception to the age of eighteen. In addition, you are introduced to different recording techniques that have been developed from observing children’s social, play, language, motor, and cognitive development.

In the third and fourth semesters, you also complete a 200-hour introductory and a 200-hour advanced practicum where you put Early Childhood Education theories into practice, document your experience, and apply advanced competencies including parent interaction, self-evaluation, and peer evaluation.

This program is designed to provide a sound background for students who intend to pursue careers in businesses with interests overseas, church work in the third world, teaching, journalism, community relations, translation, international development work, the travel industry, diplomacy, government, international trade and commerce, as well as for those wishing to prepare for advanced scholarly work and research. Currently the International and Development Studies option focuses on Latin America.

International and Development Studies field school
Optional field schools and study tours of three to six weeks duration are organized on a regular basis. A typical field school in Latin America of a three-week duration would cost approximately $2,000 plus meals. A field school certificate will be awarded to those students successfully completing this aspect of the program.

In virtually every sector of the economy, businesses of all sizes rely on information technology (IT) professionals to remain competitive. In fact, according to a recent BC Stats Report, average weekly earnings for technology employees are 85% higher than for non-tech workers in British Columbia and the unemployment rate has reached an all-time low.

UFV's intensive, two-year Computer Information Systems (CIS) diploma provides you with the knowledge and experience you need to find employment in the IT sector and prepares you to support single and networked systems to meet the requirements placed by ongoing business demands.

Throughout your studies, you explore key topics such as network and database administration, web design, network security, information systems management, and programming, which allows you to take your career in a number of different directions.

The Computer Information Systems diploma program combines courses from the computing, business, and communications fields to ensure you have the practical skills needed to obtain a first job, as well as a broad base from which to expand your training.

The four-semester program provides theoretical groundwork and specific skill development courses, with major emphasis on practical, hands-on work in UFV's modern well-equipped computer labs.

FEATURES:

• Co-op semester(s) provide paid work experience in your field of study Program eligible for financial aid

UFV ten- to eighteen-month* Data Analysis post-baccalaureate program equips you with the practical skills needed to extract reliable information from large data sets.

By taking carefully designed courses with the right mix of computing and statistics, you gain the database skills you need to house, extract, manipulate and maintain data.

More importantly, you also learn the statistical techniques needed to collect data correctly, assess its quality, analyze it, and turn it into the business intelligence that companies and institutions highly value in the marketplace.  Beyond knowing how to use specific programming languages and tools, employers need you to identify meaningful patterns, so that you can draw actionable conclusions to guide decision-making.

As the study of human movement, kinesiology explores a broad range of topics that include anatomy, biomechanics, exercise physiology, sociology, education, active health, wellness, and nutrition.

Bachelor of Kinesiology
In the Kinesiology program, you go well beyond the questions of how and why we move, and start to explore how we can optimize the human potential for health, performance, and overall wellness.

In your first and second year, you learn foundational topics such as human anatomy, sport psychology, biomechanics, and human nutrition, as well as physical activity, health, and fitness. You explore a variety of fields that may be of interest before choosing to specialize in exercise science, pedagogy, or active health.

In your third and fourth year, you develop skills for teaching and counselling athletes, and learn about athletic injuries, research methods, applied ethics, physiology, exercise testing, and exercise prescription. You also select a specialty out of the following specializations:

• The Exercise Science specialization prepares you for a career as a kinesiologist or exercise physiologist, graduate school, and/or professional school (such as physiotherapy, medicine or chiropractic).
• The Pedagogy specialization prepares you for continued certification in teacher education, coaching, sport performance advising, and/or graduate school.
• The Active Health specialization prepares you for a career in health and wellness, specifically community health and fitness, athletic therapy, sports psychology, and fitness management and recreation, and those planning to continue onto graduate school.

The Bachelor of Science in Physics allows you to explore the nature of matter, energy, and their interactions, both theoretically and experimentally. 

In this program, you learn early on about fundamental topics like electromagnetism, wave physics, thermodynamics, and relativity. Upper level courses then give you the opportunity to discuss advanced topics like quantum theory and fluid mechanics, applying principles of mathematics to the material world around you.

The Physics program also includes options for Engineering and Mechatronics, if applied sciences piques your interest.

The program:

• integrates classroom theory with a variety of potential lab experiments and hands-on projects.
• encourages exploration of new and current ideas, and challenges you to learn and enquire about the universe in new and complex ways.

UFV’s Early Childhood Education diploma builds on the knowledge and skills obtained through the ECE certificate program. Having established a strong foundation of professional practice with the ECE certificate, you can choose to further your knowledge and competencies to work specifically with infants or children with special needs. These two program options share a common set of three core courses and each requires a different set of three specialty courses, including a 26-hour seminar and a 200-hour practicum.

A Bachelor of Arts with a Political Science major, minor or extended minor offers a range of lower and upper-level courses focusing on the fields of Canadian politics, comparative politics, international relations, and political theory.

Political Science major
UFV's Political Science major is designed to provide you with valuable skills in writing, communications, critical thinking, research, problem solving, and more.

In year one and two, you learn foundational skills in political science history and theory, statistical analysis, and research methodology. In year three and four, you round out your knowkedge by investigating relevant special topics and issues such as international relations, human rights, and public policy.

The Political Science major requires the completion of 18-19 lower-level credits and 30 upper-level credits. If you have research interests you can apply one Political Science Directed Independent Studies course towards your degree.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Graphic and Digital Design is a dynamic, hands-on future-focused professional education to help you launch a career as an artist or creative lead in British Columbia's creative economy.

As a BFA student in the major, minor, or extended minor in Graphic and Digital Design, you are immersed in experiential and applied learning that equips you with the skills needed to engage your creativity, visual savvy, critical thinking, and design skills in fields such as business, marketing, social enterprise, education, government, and more. While actively engaged in design practice and professional communities, you get to make connections through special events, guest lecturers, field trips, study tours, workshops, and industry mentors. We create opportunities for meaningful work, cultural enrichment, and the greater good.

BFA with major in Graphic and Digital Design
The Graphic and Digital Design major is a purpose-driven design degree focused on being flexible and responsive to an increasingly complex world. Begin your degree with core skills in communication design, brand identity, interactive design and dynamic media. Then move into years three and four with design as a frame of reference from which to choose your work experience (practicum or co-op) and electives to meet your goals and interests. Create impactful branded experiences with industry partners and community, and gain creative leadership abilities in digital project management, UX design, and design thinking. Your learning will position you as a designer who is a critical thinker, collaborator, and an agent of change.

As part of the program, you build a portfolio that reflects your passion, leadership and creative savvy gained through real-world projects, in-depth learning, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Choose your path to become a creative professional working across the entire scope of graphic design, or specialize within a context or field of practice to create meaningful work. The emphasis is on relevance, adaptability, and resilience.